Seperation
by T1
Summary: Ranma's birthday party is going great, exept Ranma is frowning, and someone isn't there to celebrate with them....chapter three added!! and yes this is R/A
1. You didn't come

These characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi, and no matter how I plead, they will never belong to me.. never ever. So Don't sue me...I have 3 dollars and was saving it to buy another manga...and if you take that away, it won't go into your pay check =P..  
  
  
SEPERATION~  
  
  
Ranma sat with his arms folded, slouched in the chair. It seemed everybody was having a good time, everybody but him. Nobody seemed to notice his depression and if anybody had mentioned it he would have denied of course that it had anything to do with her. After all she was too good to show up, it was just a party after all, and it didn't hurt one bit that it was his birthday. Ranma frowned again, thinking of all the places he'd rather be right now. The only reason he had let them throw a party for him was because she's promised she'd come, and had joked all week about what to get him. He guessed she had just been leading him on, laughing behind his back about how gullible he was.   
  
  
"He Ranma! It's time to open presents!" Ukyo yelled from the next room where everybody was gathering.  
  
  
"Okay I'm coming!" Ranma yelled back, trying his best to sound excited.  
  
  
"Open mine first Ranma" Ukyo said handing him a small package. He took it from her, wondering what his best friend had gotten him. Wondering also if it would put him in a better mood. He gently tore the wrapping paper and opened the small box inside. "Ranma wait, I forgot to give you your card!" Ukyo said laughing as she handed him the white envelope. He quickly shut the box, gave her what he hoped looked like a happy smile and ripped open the envelope. He read through it; it was nothing special really, just the normal mushy friend crap that gets printed in every card.   
  
  
"Thanks Ukyo that's really nice.." Ranma said trying hard not to laugh, he really wasn't in the mood for this. He picked up the small box again, and opened the lid. He had to laugh at what he saw. Ukyo knew him to well. It was a long chain with the symbol for man on the end of it. He picked up the note that was at the bottom of the box. So that people will know how much of a man you really are, no matter what form you happen to be in! Happy birthday Ranchan. That was the kind of card that Ranma actually like, none of the fake stuff. Ranma gave her his first genuine smile of the night.   
  
  
"You know me so well..." he said causing everyone to laugh. Ukyo beamed proudly. Ranma didn't know how he was going to make it through everybody else.   
  
  
"Airen..You open Shampoo's present now, yes?" Shampoo asked, sliding the large present over to him.  
  
  
"Yah sure.." He bent over it and started to tear the gold wrapping paper. She handed him a jackknife as he ripped off the rest of the paper. He took the knife from her and slit the tape along the top of the box. He reached inside and pulled out 4 new Chinese style shirts.   
"You wear yes? Shampoo ask friends to send them from China."  
  
  
"Wow, thanks Shampoo" Ranma did like the present but he just wanted everybody to leave. Several people started to slide their present's foreword, causing Ranma to turn and gave Kasumi a pleading look.  
  
  
"I think that it's getting a bit late, since we ate earlier, I think it would be best if Ranma opened the rest of the presents on his own." Kasumi said, once she caught his pathetic look. Some people started to whisper but others hushed them, reminding them that this was Kasumi. People thanked Ranma for having them and finally everyone was gone. Kasumi helped move all the presents up to his room, and when they were done Ranma sank onto his bed. Once Ranma was sure Kasumi couldn't hear him he quietly mumbled to himself  
  
" I never want to have to do that ever again, I guess the stupid tomboy does make things more interesting..." He lay there for a few more minutes relishing in the quiet before heading downstairs again.   
  
  
"Nabiki did Akane tell you she wasn't going to come today?" he heard Kasumi ask from the kitchen.  
  
  
"No I thought she was coming, she had his present all picked out and everything, you don't think she changed her mind do you? I hope nothing happened to her." Nabiki said, noticing Ranma standing in the doorway. Ranma stopped dead in his tracks, he hadn't thought about that.  
  
  
"Your right, we should send Ranma out to look for her, It isn't like her to suddenly decide not to come." Kasumi said with a sigh.  
  
  
"Your right, Hey Ranma!" Nabiki called out, she started to walk foreword to go get him but Kasumi stopped her.  
  
  
"He's already gone.." She said pointing to the door that was now wide open.  
  
  
Ranma frowned grimly underneath his umbrella as he walked. He had already been searching for her for over an hour, and she wasn't anywhere. He had checked at all her friends houses that were within walking distance, and had called the rest from a pay phone. He didn't want to go back until he found her. It started to rain harder, and Ranma started to doubt that he would be male if he found her...WHEN he found her. Ranma sighed, his throat hoarse from calling out her name, and kicked at a can as he walked by. He paused after he kicked it, something wasn't right. He squinted in the dim lighting of the street lamp at the can. He saw that it wasn't a can at all but instead a shoe of some sort. *Who would leave their shoe in the middle of the sidewalk?* He thought idly to himself. He bent over and picked it up, it looked a little higher class then this neighbor hood. He was about to toss it back to the ground when something caught his eye. There was a sticker on the inside, one of those picture stickers. Ranma held it up to the light and his heart nearly stopped beating.  
  
{I know I know, I could do better cliff hangers, but I always hate cliff hangers so I decided that I would suck at them...really that's what happened. Well never fear "T" is here...bwahahaha I decided that that's going to be my trademark because I've always wanted one to put at the end of my stories. Anyways...Please write reviews, I could use some pre-readers. This is just a draft so no freaking out about how bad it is okay? Okay... anyway 0_o...I just love that face!! =P   



	2. Where have you gone?

  
  
Hello all, this is the second chapter. I'm sorry if these are kind of rushed, I have homework to do...really...anyway Thank you all for your nice comments, it's a real ego booster ^_^ This chapter will be a little longer, I know the last one was kind of short (KIND of) well heh..heh I knew if I didn't end it then, I would never make it into a chapter story, and I was SO looking foreword to doing one.   
  
These characters all belong to Rumiko Takahashi, and in no way to me, I only have 3 dollars and was saving it to buy another Ranma manga, so Don't sue me!!!! Just think of it this way, I add too your pay check (In a very small insignificant way but it is better the me not in anyway right...)Well anyway on with the show...um story...O_o  
  
  
  
Separation  
Chapter Two: Where have you gone?  
  
Akane's smile shone brightly from the picture, he knew it would be her from the minute he saw it, she was the only girl Ranma knew that stuck pictures inside her shoes, he had always figured it was some sort of good luck charm for her. For once in his life, Ranma lost control, she had gone missing before but he had this feeling deep down inside that just wouldn't go away.   
  
"AKANE!" Ranma yelled as he ran down back the way he came, searching for her, her other shoe, anything. As he ran, his chest pounded dizzily, his eyes stung, his breath came short.   
  
"AKANE, COME ON!! WHERE ARE YOU!" he yelled not trying to hide the fear that had worked its way into his throat. He was starting to panic. Akane would have noticed that she lost her shoe,   
she would have been back for it, if she had been able to go back for it. A dozen thoughts ran through his head at the same time, flooding his emotions. She was doing this to him on purpose wasn't she? Ranma ran down the nearest alley, scanning the shadows. He wasn't going to give up; he had to search everywhere.   
  
"Akane..." Ranma whispered to himself. He kneeled in the middle of the alley, the stench almost over powering him as he reached out into the shadows. His fingers gripped the cold leather, and he slowly pulled the shoe from the darkness. He checked for a picture to make sure that it was hers, he had to, even though he already knew the truth. There she was smiling back out at him. She had to put in the one of them together didn't she, it almost hurt to see him there standing next to her smiling like an idiot. He knew she wasn't dead yet, but the pain in his chest was   
getting unbearable. Ranma held the two shoes close as he turned and headed back to the dojo.  
  
  
  
  
"Nabiki, I need to talk to you...alone," Ranma said, almost commanding her,   
his voice was thick with hidden emotion. Nabiki could almost smile about   
how Ranma was acting, almost like he cared for her little sister, but her   
eyes narrowed when she noticed what Ranma was carrying.  
  
"Alright.." She said as she followed him up to his room. Once they had   
gotten inside, Ranma quickly shut the door and turned to her.  
  
"Nabiki I found these in two separate alleys, they 're hers, don't you see   
Nabiki?" Ranma said pushing the shoes at her, his impatience showing in his   
voice.  
  
"Ranma, I know this, but who did this?"  
  
"I don't know, this was all I could find, I figured that with all your   
contacts we could find something..."  
  
"Ranma, where did you find her shoes, the South side? My contacts don't go   
that far, there's nothing I need from that part of the city. I..I'll send   
someone in but I don't know if they'll get anything done." Nabiki was   
getting uncomfortable under Ranma's intent stare, his eyes prying into her,   
trying to see if she was lying. Her face started to get hot, she knew he   
didn't like her that much, but he should know better then to think she would   
lie when her sister was missing.  
  
"While I explain this to Kasumi, you should call the police, ask them what can be done, see what they say to do, this time it isn't one of your crazy friends." Nabiki said, her voice tense. Not bothering to respond Ranma raced into the hallway and flew down the stairs nearly crashing into Kasumi on the way down. Ranma yelled his apology over his shoulder as he ran towards the phone, why hadn't he thought of that? While he was shakily dialing the number he could hear Nabiki explaining the situation to Kasumi who replied with the normal 'Oh My!' and continued on with her cleaning. Ranma was beginning to get frustrated, nobody seemed to care but him! Not that he cared or anything like that...Ranma quickly told the woman who answered, who was missing, how long, and about the shoes he had found. The woman promptly responded by   
telling him that a person couldn't be considered missing until they have been gone for 24 hours at least. Ranma couldn't believe this, he had found her shoes in two different alleys and they had the nerve to say she wasn't missing. He was the only one who was actually willing to do something. He slammed down the phone, and rushed out the door, he was going to find her, he needed to find her, but he was going to need help. Nabiki rushed outside.  
  
"Ranma! Where are you going?"  
  
"I'm going to find someone who will help me!" Ranma yelled over his shoulder as he bounded away over the rooftops towards Ucchans.  
  
"Poor Ranma, you really are a baka aren't you?" Nabiki said softly, she   
didn't think it would, but using her little sister's favorite word, caused   
her, Nabiki the ice queen, to frown softly. She could have slapped herself   
right then. *Get it together, she's only missing, how many times has she   
been missing before?* Nabiki thought with a grim face, trying to ignore the   
feeling that was rising within her, that this time it was different.  
  
"You owe me Ranma..." Nabiki said, mentally making a note of this as she   
drew out a small black book, and proceeded to the telephone. She had a long   
list of people who owed her favors, but she would need a special group for   
this assignment. People who wouldn't say no, they simply couldn't.  
  
  
"Ucchan!" Ranma yelled pounding on the door, it was just occurred to him how late it really was, he felt a little guilty waking her up. All the lights were off, but as he peered inside he could see Ukyo sweeping, and dusting around the restaurant. He was glad he didn't wake her up, but she needed to open the door. He still couldn't understand why he was freaking out like he was. She had been kidnapped before, but he just felt that if he didn't hurry, he wasn't going to be getting her back. He pounded on the door again trying to get Ukyo's attention. She glanced up, and a scared look passed over her face, Ranma being too worried, didn't notice this abnormality. "Ranchan, what are you doing here?" She didn't sound as happy to see him as she normally did. He brushed it off, and tried to calm himself down. "Have you seen Akane? She didn't show up for the party, and now she hasn't come home yet. None of her friends have seen her either!" He was starting to get worked up again, he tried to calm himself down, but he couldn't settle down, he needed to be searching for her. "No..I'm sorry Ranma." Ukyo said, her face paling a bit. Ranma's face fell, and his shoulders slumped until he noticed Ukyo swaying a bit. "What's wrong? You look a bit faint" Ranma said placing a hand on her shoulder. "What? I'm just a bit tired that's all." Ranma didn't want to pressure her into helping him; she was his best friend, and she didn't really look up to searching around town tonight. He'd have to find someone else to help him.  
"Look, you get some rest okay, I'm going to go look around some more, but   
you'll keep your eye out for her right?"  
"mm.." Ukyo mumbled as the world started spinning and slowly the darkness   
came.  
  
  
"Alright people!" Nabiki yelled at the group of around 20 misfits, all in their pajama's standing around the Tendo dojo. "I have a job for you guys to do, it's not going to start right now, but I wasn't going to waste anymore money on phone bills so I decided to collect you here. My sister   
Akane has gone missing." A few gasps came from the crowd, a few gathered here were her friends, and a few were her admirers, well to say the least anyway. Tomorrow morning at exactly 9, each and every one of you is going to take a different part of the city. That will cover the most ground. Ranma and I will take the South, where Ranma found these" She emphisised her point by holding up Akane's shoes, causing more gasps to sound from the crowd. Here are maps of your streets to cover. You must leave no alley unwanderd through, no seedy comic book stores left unbrowsed. Once you do this, covering your entire area, you must report back here.  
  
So much as any signs of Akane you must quickly scout the rest of your area, for any more evidence of her, and then report back to Kasumi here, she will be in contact with me. Once you do this, your debts to me are...paid." Nabiki grimaced, clenching her teeth together. *Akane when you get home, you owe me big!* With that Nabiki handed out the maps assigned to each person, walked inside and slammed the door. Leaving a very confused group of people on the front lawn. They looked around at each other, shrugged and headed back to their houses, each one carefully remembering to set their alarm clocks for 8, they all had been wanting to get out of this debt for a very long time.  
  
Ranma wiped a wet cloth across her forehead, he was trying to be gentle, but Konatsu had slipped out of the restaurant earlier, and no body seemed to be answering at Dr. Tofu's. He was anxious to leave so he could look for Akane, but he couldn't just leave Ukyo here, like this. As he sat there, Ranma's lips began moving to a distant tune, a song he could almost remember. During his trip, his father and him had come to a small village, where a healer had been. She had offered them a night in her house; in return she only asked that Ranma remember one song. They had thought it was an odd request at the time, and it still was, but Ranma had remembered it. The silent room became filled with Ranma's voice, it was soft at first, but as the words started to come to him more naturally, his voice rose. It wasn't the nicest song, he didn't have the best voice, but it still seemed captivate whoever chose to listen. Ukyo's eyes fluttered open suddenly, her eyes darted around the room finally resting on Ranma.  
  
  
  
  
Nabiki had sent her most skilled contact out into the city, to find what he could find, to see everything, and report it all back. He came the closest of anyone Nabiki had ever met, to understanding her. He had managed to crack some of the ice that made up Nabiki Tendo, a feat none dared to do. Nabiki felt good having him on the field, and for once, since Ranma had flown out the door, she relaxed. But as soon as she had laid back, she heard his footsteps pounding outside. She sat up just as Ranma crashed through the door, his face flushed, his eyes wide.  
"Akane...."  
  
{Heh heh heh, I do love being evil...The ending may seem a little confusing but as soon as the next chapter comes out you'll understand it more! ^_^ Thanks to my pre read (it feels really good to say that!) Nm3 for all the help she's given me on this chapter!!! Any extra c&c will be welcome at tatiana_20@msn.com, thanks for reading it!! In the next chapter there will be more on Akane's situation (I think at any rate) and some on what happened to Ukyo!! So look foreword to it!  
  
  
  



	3. Why?

{Hello! Sorry for the extra evil ending on the last chapter ^_^, It just worked,   
you know keep you guessing and all..heh heh..well anyway finally here is the next chapter: dun dun dun... Oh and all these characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi and in no way to me...so yah...}   
  
Separation   
Chapter Three: Why?   
  
  
  
  
Suyuri walked slowly home, trying her best not to imagine what had happened to Akane. She was almost getting use to her friend being kidnapped, but there seemed to be an urgency in the air that had never been there before. She was just thankful that Nabiki hadn't made them go out searching now, the wind was biting at her skin, and the dim light from the street lamps flickered in and out of existence. She quickly pulled the loose flannel of her pajama's closer, and thought of Akane out in this weather, wondering if she should really be worried or if Ranma was just going to solve everything again. She knew she would be out searching tomorrow or today for that matter, but right now all she wanted to do was climb into her warm bed. She grimaced as she remembered that Nabiki had given her the worst possible streets to cover. 164th through 140th, no one went down there, well no one she knew anyway. Even the so-called "Bad boys of Furikan" didn't go there, hell they didn't even talk about it. Suyuri sighed heavily; she wasn't looking foreword to this.   
  
* * *   
  
  
Nabiki jumped off the couch, her eyes wide. "Ranma? What's wrong? Did you find Akane?" Ranma just shook his head, unable to say anything.   
  
"Then what the hell is wrong with you!" Nabiki cried, god he infuriated her, he got her all worked up that Akane might be found, just to shake his head stupidly, *way to go Ranma...*   
  
"Nothing, I'm sorry," Ranma said finally able to find his voice. "Ukyo's seen Akane, and I saw her to, but she wasn't there. It was just this..this projection of her."   
  
"Ranma what are you talking about?"   
  
"Ukyo fainted and when she woke up she stared at me kind of surprised to see me, and then whispered Akane, and I turned and saw her--"   
  
"Akane?!"   
  
"Yah, she was there leaning against a different wall. She looked different, she had some cuts, and was really pale. She was trying to say something but we couldn't make it out. She looked really scared Nabiki; Akane doesn't normally get scared. I'm worried about her. I don't know what to do, for once in my life I'm lost." Ranma breathed deeply, trying to steady his breath. He was shaking.   
  
*He really is worried about her. God I hope she's alright.* Nabiki fidgeted with her shirt, not knowing what to say. "Well..I sent someone out into the city, they should be reporting back to me any second now." Nabiki glanced quickly and the phone. "Also I have a bunch of people going out tomorrow..."   
  
"Tomorrow isn't soon enough!" Ranma yelled getting frustrated   
  
"Ranma is 3 in the morning! Tomorrow is in a few hours, hell it is tomorrow, and   
you can't expect everyone to be as fit as you are this early in the morning! I'm about ready to drop, Kasumi fell asleep on the couch, and you look like your ready to jog! You need to realize that not everyone can keep up to your speed, and we WILL do a better job if we get at least some sleep!" Nabiki yelled back, she was tired and she was bound to be a little cranky.   
  
"Okay, I'm sorry I didn't realize it was that late. Just wake me up the minute the other's get here, I want to be out there as soon as possible." Ranma said, looking guilty. He yawned loudly and headed up to his bedroom. Nabiki continued to stare at his retreating form a little longer, she shook her head, and headed off to her own room.   
  
* * *   
  
  
Suyuri awoke with a pounding headache, and glared evilly at her alarm clock. She had been dreading this moment. She stumbled out of bed, and got dressed, trying her best not to look rich. Getting mugged wasn't on her list of things to do today. She ate quickly; she didn't want to be late, and sprinted towards the Tendo dojo.   
  
  
* * *   
  
  
  
"Ranma! Wake up!" Nabiki yelled into his ear, and yet he didn't budge. "RANMA!!"   
  
"Nabiki, I don't think that will wake Ranma-Kun" Kasumi said standing in the doorway.   
  
"Oh I didn't see you there" Nabiki said trying to look unshaken.   
  
"Why don't you try this?" Kasumi said handing Nabiki a bucket filled with ice cold water. "It always seems to work for Akane."   
  
"Thanks Kasumi." Nabiki said, maybe her sister wasn't so clueless after all. Nabiki held the bucket over his sleeping form, and prayed one last time that he wouldn't kill her as she started to pour.   
  
"AHHHH!" Ranma cried as the drenched former boy jumped from bed. "Whadya do that for ya stupid Tomboy!" he yelled. A confused look passed over his face, a then his frown dropped to a sad pout. Ranma glanced to where Nabiki was standing with the empty bucket.   
  
"Oh thanks..., is everyone here?" He asked with a slight sigh. Nabiki was going to have to record some of this tell tale behavior, Ranma was almost acting like he cared for her sister..this could prove to be most rewarding.   
  
Ranma grabbed some hot water of the stove and met Nabiki outside the house. His breath blew big frosty puffs into the air, as he rubbed his hands together, not the warmest day ever. He glanced over the crowd, and was surprised to see Kuno, Ryouga and Suyuri pacing around. What had Suyuri ever done to hang out with this crowd? He actually wasn't that surprised to see Kuno, Ryouga on the other hand..that was just confusing he didn't even go to Furikan.   
  
"Ryouga, what are you doing here?"   
  
"I came to help find Akane, she needs someone to help her."   
  
"I suppose you think you can find her before I can?!" Ranma said glaring at the pig boy.   
  
"You guessed right, you don't even know how to be nice to her, let alone help her!" Ryouga glared back.   
  
"You don't know what you're talking about Ryouga!" Ranma yelled, a dangerous glint in his eyes.   
  
"I don't think fighting each other will help find Akane." Kasumi said handing both of them maps.   
  
They both looked shamefully at the ground, as they quickly joined the rest of the crowd surrounding Nabiki.   
  
"Alright guys, Everyone remember what to do? If not I'm not going to fill you in because we're wasting precious time right now. Now get out there and find my sister!" Nabiki yelled, pushing her way through the crowd. "Come on Ranma." She said as she grabbed his hand and started towards there streets. The rest of the crowd fanned out, heading in their respective directions. Kasumi glanced sadly at the dispersing people, and headed back inside to clean.   
  
  
* * *   
  
  
  
Ukyo leaned against the wall of her restaurant, the vision of Akane haunting her. She didn't know how she had fainted or why, she hadn't started to feel awful until right before Ranma had come. She had a feeling, a gut feeling that Akane wasn't going to come back, or at least wasn't going to come back anytime soon. This of course filled her with mixed emotions, she finally had Ranma-honey all to herself, Shampoo didn't stand a chance, but also she was worried for Akane, in a very small way, but still worried. Whether she liked it or not Akane had been there since the beginning, and deep down Ukyo didn't really hate her, deep, deep down. Ukyo sighed and began to pick up the restaurant, thoughts of Akane never leaving her mind.   
  
* * *   
  
  
"Ranma! Slow down! I can't keep that pace, and you don't know where you're going, you have to wait for me or else the system won't work and you'll end up in some one else's streets, alright?" Nabiki called out. Ranma turned, anger flashing in his eyes. He quickly disguised it and stopped running long enough for Nabiki to catch up.   
  
"I can't help it Nabiki, I just want to find her.." Ranma said quietly, his former anger finally gone. "Ranma, Ranma, Ranma, It's alright your in love with my sister and want to get her back..." Nabiki said, crossing her fingers.   
  
"I never said I was in love with her" Ranma snapped back "Who could love a tomboy like that anyway.." Ranma replied, a distant look in his eyes.   
  
"Sorry, sorry, let's just keep going..." Nabiki replied a hint of a smile playing across her normally frozen exterior.   
  
* * *   
  
Suyuri fingered the edge of her jacket nervously as she approached the nearest building. She quickly calmed herself down, and tried her best to look tough. Suyuri quickly ducked into the doorway and started towards the front desk. She wasn't sure what she was suppose to do.   
  
"umm do you mind if I ask you a few questions?" She asked nervously running her fingers through her hair.   
  
"Do I look like I'd be helpful?" the man asked, a frown across his unusually handsome face. Suyuri suddenly found her thought on something other then Akane, and had to quickly shake them from her mind.   
  
"Well it's about a friend, she's been gone a few days---"   
  
"And you think I know where she is?" The man cut in.   
  
"I'm sorry I've been rude, my name is Suyuri. I just thought that you might have seen her, she's got brown hair, and big brown eyes, she's this high." Suyuri said motioning Akane's height with shaky hands. This guy may be cute, but he doesn't look nice. The man laughed, A smile finally resting on his face.   
  
"Don't look so nervous, my name is Mark, and in case you hadn't guessed I'm a gajin,   
from Boston, in America, I heard most Asian's don't like out of towners, I figured with a tough look they'd just leave me alone...Sorry about that." Mark said, scratching the back of his head.   
  
"oh well, I'm sorry to rush you but I'm in a bit of a hurry, have you seen her?"   
  
"No, I'm sorry, I hope you find her though." Mark said, smiling. "Nice to meet you." He said extending his hand. Suyuri looked at it plainly before grabbing it and shaking.   
  
"Nice to meet you too. I'm sorry but I've got to be going...Bye" She called over her shoulder as she rushed out the door, and quickly ran down the block. 'Damn, I wasted too much time in there, I've got to be more careful. Dammit Akane, please be alright'   
  
* * *   
  
Akane sat up slowly, banging her head against the low ceiling in the process. She rubbed the newly forming bruise on her head as her eyes slowly became adjusted to the dark.   
  
"Shit.."   
  
  
  
{ALrighty, that's the end of chapter 3, I told you I'd give you more on where Akane is, muahahahhaha ^_^ anyway expect that chapters faster cuz its summer (YAY!) anyway I have more of an idea for chapter 4 so it should come faster then 3 which I just wrote as I went along, so anyway...heh oh once again c/c can be sent to tatiana_20@msn.com thanks! ^_^ }   
  
  
  
  
  



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